The Dallas Cowboys 7th Round has concluded, and their 2025 draft class is officially set.
With three picks in this round, they added Jay Toia, a defensive tackle from UCLA, Phil Mafah, a running back from Clemson, and another defensive tackle in Tommy Akingbesote from Maryland.
Much like the rest of the class, Dallas balanced offense and defense, and also went with a best player available strategy.
We’ve seen them double-dip at positions, and also ignore some key spots, like wide receiver.
Fans aren’t going to love that, but it became clear very quickly that the Cowboys feel comfortable with Jonathan Mingo, Jalen Tolbert, and Ryan Flournoy as the WR2.
That strategy has failed them before, and we’ll see if that trend changes, but for now, let’s focus on these Cowboys 7th Round selections.
217th Pick: Jay Toia, DT, UCLA
Dallas wanted to address the 1-tech position in this draft, and they finally did with Toia. We’re talking about a legitimate 340 lb player here.
Currently, the depth chart has Justin Rogers, Solomon Thomas, Mazi Smith, and Earnest Brown IV behind Osa Odighizuwa. That room, with all due respect to Smith, who showed some flashes in 2024, is not good enough.
We have seen the Cowboys’ run defense struggle for years now, and Toia’s selection here is a clear move to combat it.
I don’t want to get ahead of myself. But this is my favorite Cowboys draft in a long, long time. Jay Toia is a war daddy nose guard and will compete for snaps as a 7th rounder.
A+ draft on straight up BPA.
— Jonah Tuls (@JonahTuls) April 26, 2025
Yes, a seventh-round pick may not solve it, but Toia could certainly contribute on the field in 2025.
Initially a USC Trojan, Toia transferred to the UCLA Bruins in his freshman year and finished his four-year collegiate career there. He totaled 91 tackles and nine for yardage loss in 50 career games.
As a prospect, his size and physicality are his strongest attributes; this guy can eat up running backs, and the Cowboys will call on him to do that this fall.
239th Pick: Phil Mafah, RB, Clemson
After ignoring the running back position for the entirety of the 2024 class, Dallas has now selected two in the 2025 draft.
Texas star Jaydon Blue joined the team in the fifth round, and his explosive speed and big-play ability needed a strong, short-yardage contrast, and the Cowboys got that with Clemson’s Phil Mafah.
This guy weighed in over 230 lbs at the NFL Scouting Combine, and his play style certainly backs that number up.
Mafah is an incredibly strong runner who scored a staggering 28 rushing touchdowns in his four years with the Tigers. That kind of goal-line presence is exactly what Dallas needs at the running back position.
#Cowboys drafting RB Phil Mafah from Clemson in the 7th round.
6’1” 234 lbs.
Big bodied back to complement Jaydon Blue.
— Brandon Loree (@Brandoniswrite) April 26, 2025
The Cowboys did sign both Javonte Williams and Miles Sanders, and they could win that short-yardage job, but I would rather take a chance on a younger option like Mafah.
He isn’t much of a runner, and his ceiling isn’t too high as a result, but that’s not what Dallas needs in the 7th round here.
Hard, powerful running was a big need after drafting Blue, and they got it here.
247th Pick: Tommy Akingbesote, DT, Maryland
We thought the Cowboys had addressed the defensive tackle spot with Toia, but much like their running back strategy, they went back for more with Akingbesote.
Perhaps their unknown draftee, Akingbesote was previously a big-name high school recruit.
He left high school as a four-star recruit and committed to his hometown college with the Terrapins. His four years there did not feature any significant statistical production, but he did become a consistent starter.
Dane Brugler on Tommy Akingbesote: "Overall, Akingbesote has unquestionable talent, especially for his size, but he was more of a cog in the machine than a difference-maker that jumped off the tape or the stat sheet."
Aaand that's the Draft for the Dallas Cowboys.
— Mauricio Rodríguez (@MauNFL) April 26, 2025
Akingbesote started 44 games in four seasons, with a career high in tackles and tackles for loss in 2024.
Right now, it’s hard to see him making the team with Toia and the incumbent defensive tackle depth in front of him, but Dallas clearly sees something in him.
His size, at 6’4″, 300 lbs, is impressive, and if they can mold him into a stronger frame, they could have a legitimate option on the interior defensive line.